Summer Camp 2011 - Daily Diary: Musically Minded Day 4

Today, we took a look at our superhero selves. To start, we watched a video put out by the Discovery Channel about genuine superhumans - a man who can run barefoot in the snow, a blind man who can paint, and a human calculator.

Then we talked about what kind of superhuman powers we would want. The list included invisibility, the ability to read minds, flight, taking on the power of animals, and getting power through a sword, wand, and other means.

After each of us created our own superhuman character, we reviewed the elements of a story (plot, dialogue, setting, etc.) and then we teamed up to write adventures featuring our superhero duos.

Ross' map drawings for fun

Sushma, Madelena, Claire, and Izzy

Ross

Izzy's suitcase

Sydney's suitcase

Allistair

Claire and Sydney work on their superhero adventure

The kids' "Suitcases of You"

The Inside-Out Gang!

Later we finished our masks working outside on a beautiful day. See if you can recognize who is behind them in these photos- Hint: Alistair, Sushma, Claire and Izzy.

We're excited to prepare for tomorrow's reading!

Summer Camp 2011 - Daily Diary: Musically Minded Day 3

Today we delved into persona poems, taking on the persona of another person, or animal or writing about ourselves. We followed a certain format starting each line with, "I am" and "I wonder" and "I hear" and "I see", etc. 

Here is some of what came out:

Ross

Achilles
I am almost invincible and a strong warrior.
I wonder how Paris found out.
I hear Polyxena's beautiful voice
I see the darkness of Hades
I want to fight for eternity
I am almost invincible and a strong warrior.

Sushma

I am happy all day long and I chew on bones.
I wonder when my owners are going to give me a treat.
I hear other dogs walking.
I see other dogs playing fetch.
I want a new chew toy.
I am happy alll day long and I chew on bones.

Madelena ( writing about herself)

I am funny and smart
I wonder if I could fly
I hear silly music
I see fairies flying
I want a bunk bed
I am funny and smart.

We also wrote "I am From Poems" which explored the textures, sounds,
memories, foods and people. Here are a few excerpts:

Claire

I Am From
I am from my dogs whining to be fed and cats meowing when they want attention.
I am from the sweet smell of sap in the morning and the sounds of
birds chirping...
I am from another world under the sea with all sorts of wonderful and
colorful fish
i am from flying ove the city and tiny stars floating above me.

Sydney

I am from my dog licking me in the morning, I am from my family
snoring at night time.
I am from the night sky glimmering down at me and the sun shining bright.
I am from the girl wearing a Giants hat even if they lose the world
series...I am the girl who gets in
trouble by my brother and has to live with it.

Izzy

I am from the warm licks of Molly's tongue in the morning, the mouth
watering smell of bacon
and crepes. I am from my mama sneaking treats into my backpack and my
dad's warm, comforting hands.

Allistair

I am from the scar surgery,
I am from the memories of the flight that was cancelled, the trip to
Tahoe. I am from my grandpa's home on Texas.
The Kaiser Permanente. To the lake in New York.
I am from the smells of Skyline Boulevard, baked muffins and fizzy apple juice.

Continuing with the theme of inside and outside selves we composed letters to our future selves, 10 years from now. There were some wonderful results:

Sydney

Dear Sydney, the 19 year old,

You believe in fair. You love to sing and dance. You love to write and
draw....You love the Giants... Do not get a tatoo or smoke.

Allistair

Dear 21 year old Allistair,
I'm writing from my 11 year old self.  I'm just going into middle
school. Do you remember middle school? Can you write me back, maybe
send it through a time portal, if they have those invented.

We started the afternoon with a neighborhood walk that included a 59 step path and Ross and Alistair lead the way. Back at Musically Minded we looked at books on Masks from different cultures and sketched our ideas. We worked on our masks, and finished our suitcases and portraits. 

Summer Camp 2011 - Daily Diary: Musically Minded Day 2

Today, Tuesday, we started out by creating alliterations based on the first letter of our first names that also described us. Here's one from Izzy:

Izzy is impeccable, she can do the impossible inside her interesting and interested mind. Is going into air impossible? Not to impeccable Izzy!

Next we explored identity a little further by taking on the identity of another person or object. Here are a few of the results:

Claire:

Point (an excerpt)

I'm a pencil whose name is Point. I live in a pencil box with my Mom, my Dad, two baby brothers and a big sister...I was taken in a dark room and this person or thing used me to write but it was also shredding my head! Then when my head was all worn down this person or thing stuck me into a hole that started to sharpen me...

Alistair

"Fate" (an excerpt)

It is a crowded place in drawer three of the chest of drawers. All my sock-y friends are there. Then I heard a shout in row 58. It was Kenny sock.

"Susan sock in missing! Sound the alarm!"

"Everyone push open the drawer", I yelled.

"Umm, oh", no hands!", said Bill sock. "Then use your sides!", I said.

Everybody pushed and I tumbled out. "Ahhhh!"

"Send me a postcard if you get out of this room!", said Tess sock. They shut the drawer and I was left out...

Madelena (an excerpt)

There once was a sock named Blueberry . Blueberry's color was blue (of course). She was said because she couldn't find her matching sock. She looked for her (her name was Orange) in the drawer, the laundry basket and under the bed...

Sydney (an excerpt)

Once upon a time there was a snail who lived in the underworld. It was a very mean, sloppy, soupy snail and her friends did not like that. So they told her and she said, " I am a thousand years old and I don't want to be called those things!"

We also examined how our beliefs are part of who we are. After listening to an essay written by a young boy named Tarek from the NPR radio program called, "This I Believe", we wrote our own. Here are excerpts from a few:

This I Believe

Ross

"I believe that smoking should be deemed a crime. Not only crime, but assault. not only assault. but slow, grueling chronically painful assault."

Sushma

"I believe that you have to die so then another animal or human can be born and have a turn to see the world. And to learn the knowledge and for the knowledge to flow into the brain. And when the animal or human dies the knowledge flows out of the animal or human so then the new animal or human can learn."

It was a rainy camp day but we stayed dry and busy inside. In the afternoon we worked on "Emotional Portraits" after discussing cool and hot colors and the emotions they convey. We also worked on our Inside Out Suitcases. We popped the balloons on our paper mache masks but decided to give them an extra day to dry.